First second, he dodged Ware.
Second second, he dodged Scandrick.
What would Lu Ke do in the third second?
Lu Ke's nimble and light footwork had carried him past the defensive line's interception point. After continuously dodging two tackles, the field opened up, becoming wider than ever before. It seemed like he could just keep running, gaining more yards.
However, Lu Ke's mind remained perfectly clear: He was a quarterback, not a running back, and his running ability was truly nothing to write home about. What's more, the special skill had only one second left, and he couldn't waste it.
So, Lu Ke faked a run. Using the third second of Absolute Footwork, he quickly moved horizontally. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the Dallas Cowboys' defensive players in a panic. They clearly hadn't expected Lu Ke to scramble with the ball himself. This unexpected move completely broke their defensive formation.
The players reacted immediately: two linebackers charged, two defensive linemen charged, and the safety roaming the backfield on the left also charged. Pursuers were visible in every corner of his vision, closing in on Lu Ke like a circle.
Lu Ke didn't hesitate, moving horizontally, and then horizontally again, completely scrambling the defensive formation. Tick...tock...
Just as the third second was about to end, Lu Ke looked up, taking in the entire field from a high vantage point. He then caught a glimpse of a figure in the top right corner, a red jersey, gold pants, and the number 88. He was sprinting rapidly toward the middle of the field, his momentum so fierce it created a gust of air.
He raised his arm, drew back, built up power, aimed, and released the ball.
The entire motion was seamless. The football was thrown high, tearing through the air unimpeded, and speeding toward the far end of the field. It was a bullet pass with a slight arc, and the ball was incredibly fast!
"A pass? This is a pass?"
Chris Wilson's eyes widened. He stared at the field in disbelief, a string of curses spilling out of his mouth. He simply couldn't believe it! The San Francisco 49ers' rookie quarterback was an idiot, a complete and utter idiot!
At this moment, any fan could see that the 49ers' rookie quarterback, number 14, had created a gap. All he had to do was run, run forward. There were no obstacles. All he needed to do was run and get the first down in just two seconds! The closest defensive player was still a good distance away, with no time to make a tackle!
But this quarterback had chosen to pass?
Stupid! Brain-dead! Idiot! Moron!
Choosing to pass now would wipe out the advantage the quarterback had created by running with the ball. More importantly, what if the pass failed? What if it was intercepted? He had given up an easy, close first down for a reckless, insane pass? This... this was simply...
He wasn't an idiot; he was insane!
Chris felt like his heart was about to burst!
As a loyal San Francisco 49ers fan, the Wilson family's support and love for the team could be traced back to Chris's grandfather. By the time Chris was five, he was running around the backyard in a red and gold jersey. As a child, his daily pastime was watching old San Francisco 49ers game footage, over and over again, never missing any of the historic key games.
This week's game against the Dallas Cowboys was a particularly big deal for Chris. Historically, the two teams had a long-standing rivalry. This year, both teams were showing a rare resurgence, and the pre-game atmosphere was tense. Chris was full of anticipation.
But after the game started, the San Francisco 49ers' offense was a complete disaster! An absolute disaster! Zero points in the first half was embarrassing enough, but what was even more unbelievable was that they had only gotten one first down in the entire first half? This had to be one of the worst first halves in San Francisco 49ers history!
And now, after finally showing a little momentum, the quarterback had chosen to pass?
Chris felt that if he were a pufferfish, he would explode right now!
In Candlestick Park, Chris wasn't the only one who felt this way. Everyone in the stadium was holding their breath, with question marks hanging over their heads, completely baffled. Curses and swear words were on the tip of their tongues, but the action on the field was so fast that before the sounds could erupt, people found the answer to their questions—
Number 88, Logan Newman.
But when did Logan get there? Why had no one noticed? A wave of gasps and cheers rippled through the crowd.
Logan was sprinting like an arrow from a bow, crossing the 30-yard line, the 40-yard line, and the midfield line. But his feet didn't stop. He made a sharp turn, cutting inward, and rapidly advanced toward the center of the field. His running route was a straight line radiating at a 60-degree angle toward the top left.
40 yards, 30 yards, 25 yards... Logan's run was very aggressive. At this moment, if any player tried to tackle him, Logan could easily break through the collision and keep moving forward. His run was powerful and strong. He slammed on the brakes, made a turn, and the football was already close, within his reach.
All Logan had to do was get into a receiving position and firmly catch the football to his chest. Catch it! Catch it! Catch it! This was the only thought in Logan's mind. But the force of the pass was slightly more than he expected, and the forward momentum was a little out of control. Logan stumbled back a couple of big steps and then fell to the ground after a backward somersault.
The play was over. But he wasn't hurt, and he didn't drop the ball. The pass was complete!
The entire stadium erupted!
"Fk! Fk! F**k!" Chris exploded, a genuine explosion. He jumped up ecstatically, tripped over his knee, and fell hard onto his seat. But he didn't care about the pain. Curses came one after another, and his eyes almost popped out of his head. He was just roaring, roaring crazily.
In an instant, all the turmoil and confusion vanished, leaving only a rush of adrenaline.
Chris jumped back up, joining the rest of the fans in Candlestick Park, celebrating wildly and screaming at the field, "F**k!" His face was flushed, his veins were bulging, and he was close to a real explosion. It was as if his earlier surprise and anger had never happened.
A slap in the face? Chris welcomed it with open arms, ready for it, and was happy to see it happen. If a few more slaps in the face meant the San Francisco 49ers could win, he would gladly offer his cheek, the left one first, then the right, and even his butt if necessary.
"God! God! God!" Troy Balu roared like a machine gun in the commentary booth. "The catch is complete! The catch is complete! Jesus Christ! Newman, the San Francisco 49ers' tight end Logan Newman has completed the catch! It's a 50-yard pass! A deadly deep pass!"
"The second half has just begun, and the San Francisco 49ers have completed the most brilliant passing play of the game! 50 yards! The 49ers have moved all the way to their opponent's 22-yard line in one fell swoop. God!" Troy was completely fired up, unable to believe what he had just seen. "What happened? What exactly happened? Let's take a look at the replay right now!"
Troy stared intently at the screen, rewatching the play.
"After lining up in a T-formation, the San Francisco 49ers snapped the ball. The two players, Jean and Newman, ran to the right side, and Crabtree was also on that side. The right side suddenly had three receiving players, and the Cowboys' defense reacted very quickly, assigning three linebackers and one cornerback to cover them."
"Meanwhile, Lu Ke and Lynch moved to the left side, and Williams was also on this side. But as soon as the ball was snapped, Williams also started running, turning to the right. This brought the number of receiving players on the right side to four. The entire Cowboys' defense began to shrink, leaning heavily toward their left side."
"Both Williams and Crabtree found open spots and began calling for the ball. The Cowboys' defense responded immediately, and the secondary defenders pushed up. One side of the field became congested. But at this moment, the 49ers' quarterback, Lu Ke, and Lynch continued to charge to the left. The intention to pass or run was completely unclear."
"Ware comes to cover, Lynch intercepts. Scandrick comes to cover, whoa, Lu Ke's footwork is simply perfect, elegantly and lightly avoiding the tackle. He's still moving horizontally, Lu Ke is still moving. This is a quarterback scramble! The nimble footwork completely disrupts the opponent's defensive formation. The safety in the backfield and the linebackers in the front field all start to move up to cover, trying to tackle the quarterback, but in a flash of lightning, Lu Ke chooses to pass!"
Troy's commentary was in full force, like a machine gun, firing off continuously without a single pause. In just over ten seconds, hundreds of words were spewed out. He was no less impressive than a rapper. After the replay commentary was finished, Troy finally had time to catch his breath.
Then, he continued.
"The entire play was dazzling and ever-changing. From the first second to the last, the San Francisco 49ers' quarterback was in control. He never let the Dallas Cowboys' defensive players figure out his passing intention. To be precise, was it a pass or a run? Was it a run or a pass? With his footwork, the intention was never fixed, always kept possible, and this completely disrupted the Cowboys' defensive strategy."
"Whoa!" Troy couldn't help but exclaim. "Let's review: After the snap, a total of four receiving players were stacked on the right side of the field, two of whom even created open spots. This caused all the Dallas Cowboys' defensive players to stack on that side."
"But the next second, Lu Ke showed signs of scrambling—and with his agile footwork, he moved horizontally five yards. The path in front of him was wide open, and he could have easily run for a first down. To stop the bleeding, the Cowboys' defensive players immediately started to move up to cover. Not just the front-line defensive players, but even the secondary defenders all began to push up!"
As he was commentating, Troy himself reached a climax. This was simply too incredible!
Brilliant, absolutely brilliant!
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